Comfort Food

Page down for Tater Tot Hot Dish, Christmas meatballs and gravy or a great homemade pizza recipe, or click here for Chicken and Dirty Rice.   Also try these great sandwiches, Classic Beef Pot Roast, two types of Beef Stew, or Pork recipes you can make indoors on those terrible days when you can't smoke something.  And don't forget about Pete's favorite Hangover food!

Creamy Cajun Chicken and Sausage Pasta (see photo at right), perfected by Pete and his son (the broad-shouldered one in KC) on a day that they both wanted to cook.  We tinkered a little, came up with this and ate the whole batch.  That was a special day.

Ingredients:

· 8 oz fusilli or rotini pasta

· 3 T unsalted butter (divided)

· 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

· 1 lb smoked link sausage, sliced in ¼” pieces

· ½ white onion, chopped

· 1 green pepper, chopped

· Cajun seasoning

· Italian seasoning

· Salt and pepper

For sauce:

· 4 cloves garlic, minced

· 1 cup sodium free or low sodium chicken broth

· 1 t worsterchestershieister sauce

· 1 cup heavy cream

· 1 T Cajun seasoning

· 1 t paprika

· ¾ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

· Sea salt to taste

Generously season chicken breasts with salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning and Italian seasoning.

In a large skillet, melt 1 T butter over high heat. When pan is hot, add whole chicken breasts and cook over high heat 4-5 minutes on each side until browned and cooked through to 160 degrees internal temp. Remove chicken from pan and slice into strips about 3/8” thick, set aside.

Start a pot of water for the pasta and heat it over high heat, per pasta package instructions. Add 1 T of salt to the water while heating.

Add sliced sausage to hot pan and brown over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring or flipping occasionally until all sides have dark edges appearing. Remove sausage pieces from pan using a slotted spoon to leave some grease in the pan for the next step, and set aside. I usually set cooked sausage on a plate with a paper towel to absorb a little of the grease. That, along with the presence of a green vegetable, makes this health food. 

This is about the time your pasta water should be boiling, add pasta and cook per instructions, drain and set aside.

Deglaze the pan with 1 or 2 T of water and the remaining 2T of butter along with chopped onions and green pepper. Cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until onion is soft. Scrape the pan with a spatula while cooking to remove all the tasty sausage and chicken bits that attached to the pan. Remove the onion and pepper with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving as much liquid as possible in the pan.

Now make the sauce in the same pan. Add 1 T butter and melt over medium heat. When butter is melted, add minced garlic and cook 2-3 minutes until lightly browned. Then add chicken broth, Worst sauce and cream. Bring to a simmer. Add Cajun seasoning and paprika and stir to mix thoroughly. While simmering, add Parmesan cheese slowly to avoid clumping and whisk into sauce as it melts.

Now you have a beautiful, creamy orange sauce simmering in the pan. Taste it and add a little sea salt a/o pepper if you like. Add pasta and stir to coat all the pasta with sauce. Add chicken strips, sausage, onions and peppers. Cover and cook for a few minutes to get everything hot again. Serve immediately.

Options: You could use half and half instead of heavy cream to save a few calories but it won’t be as good and what did you think you were making anyway. 

You could include celery because most Cajun dishes do but your Old Pal Pete hates that devil weed so he leaves it out. The original recipe that we used called for some sliced mushrooms, too, added after the sausage was cooked, during the deglaze. That didn’t seem right so we left it out but a few ‘shrooms might be OK.

This dish, along with the Chicken and Dirty Rice that you have previously mastered, are big favorites with Pete’s carnivorous sons and their pals. They use (mostly) common ingredients,  are easy to make and make great leftovers if you don’t eat it all in one sitting. Enjoy!

• 1lb ground beef

• ½ white or yellow onion, finely chopped

• 1 can mushroom soup

• 1 12 ounce package of frozen mixed vegetables

• One bag of frozen tater tots

• Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Brown ground beef with chopped onion, season with salt and pepper.  Pour into a large mixing bowl and mix in soup and vegetables.  Pour into 9*13” baking dish or casserole and smooth out any bumps.  

Arrange frozen tots on mixture to completely cover surface.  Bake at 375 for 25 minutes or until tots are browned and beginning to crisp.

This is a Midwestern classic that any sane family will love.  A big plate of TTHD and some salad is just about a perfect meal.  

Since there is ground beef, most folks like to put a little ketchup on top, but you don’t have to.  You have the power.

Chili variation:  Add 1 T chili powder and 1 t cumin when browning ground beef with onion.  Instead of mushroom soup and mixed vegetables, use two cans of chili beans, or pinto beans with a little more chili powder.  Mix together, then add tots and bake.  Scatter some shredded cheddar cheese over the tots for the last 3 or 4 minutes of baking.  

Green chili variation:  Replace mixed vegetables and mushroom soup with a jar of commercial green chili.  Mix with ground beef/onion, place tots on top and bake, adding cheddar cheese if you like.  Serve with sour cream.  Try not to eat it all, I dare you.

We have this on Christmas Eve but it's delicious anytime!

Meatballs

· 1 ½ lb ground meat (all beef or two-thirds beef, one-third pork)

· 1 cup minced onion

· 2 T butter

· ½ cup milk

· ½ cup fresh bread crumbs

· 1 ¼ t salt

· 1 egg

· 1/2 t allspice, plus a bit more for the gravy

· ½ t nutmeg

Gravy

· 1 T butter

· 3 T flour

· 2 t sugar

· 1 t salt

· ½ t pepper

- 1/4 t allspice

· 1 cup beef broth

· ¾ cup half and half

· Parsley

Sauté onion in 2 T butter. In bowl, combine egg, milk, bread crumbs and meatball seasonings. Add meat and sautéed onions, mix until well blended. Shape into balls 1 ¼ inch in diameter. Don’t pack too tightly, just enough to hold them together.  Place meatballs in two lightly buttered 9x13 inch baking pans. Bake at 350 degrees until lightly browned, 25-30 minutes. Transfer cooked meatballs to oven proof serving dish.

Scrape fat and drippings from baking pans into a medium saucepan. Add 1 T butter (optional, depends on how lean the meat was). Stir in flour, 2 t sugar, 1 t salt and pepper and a dash of allspice. Gradually add beef broth and half and half. Stir over low heat until mixture comes to a boil. Boil and stir for one minute. Pour gravy over meatballs. Bake uncovered in an oven preheated to 325 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Garnish with parsley.

Have this after early church or before the late service. Serve with mashed potatoes, a green vegetable and crescent rolls. Lefse if you have it. Read the Christmas story from Luke and go to bed because Santa is coming soon!

• 24 slices of deli honey ham (or more)

• 6 Slices of swiss cheese, cut into fourths

• 1/3 cup mayonnaise

• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

• 1 1/2 tablespoons dijon mustard

• 1/2 cup butter melted

• 1 tablespoon Onion Powder

• 1/2 teaspoon worcestesertstershire sauce

• 2 packages (12 count) KING'S HAWAIIAN Original Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls

Cut rolls in half and spread mayo onto 1 side of the rolls. Place a slice or two of ham and slice of swiss cheese in roll. Replace the top of the rolls and bunch them closely together into a baking dish.

In a medium bowl, whisk together poppy seeds, dijon mustard, melted butter, onion powder and worsterhoostershire sauce.

Pour sauce over the rolls, just covering the tops. Cover with foil and let sit for 10 minutes.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Uncover and cook for additional 2 minutes until tops are slightly browned and crisp. Serve warm.

These HnC sliders are good and easy.  The combination of ham, Swiss, Dijon and the sweet rolls is just right.  

Eat ‘em all when you make them because leftovers will get soggy.  Make a half batch if that’s all you can eat the first day.

Pour-in-a-Pan Pizza

Ingredients

· 400 grams (2 3/4 plus 2 1/2 tablespoons) bread flour

· 2 teaspoons sugar

· Two 1/4 ounce packets instant yeast (4 1/2 teaspoons)

· 1 1/2 Cups water, 100-110 degrees F

· Kosher salt and ground black pepper

· 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for oiling your hands and whatever post-pizza recreation you might have planned

· 1 pound Campari or cherry tomatoes (or one large can whole Marzano tomatoes)

· 6 ounces whole milk Mozzarella cheese, shredded (3 cups). Note – do not use fresh mozzarella for this. That is great stuff but too wet for this recipe. Just get a bag of shredded stuff.  

· Chopped fresh basil

· 1 teaspoon dried oregano

· Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)

In a stand mixer, with a dough hook, mix the flour, sugar and yeast on medium until combined, about 30 seconds. With the mixer running, add the water and mix on medium until a sticky dough forms, about 5 minutes; scrape the bowl and dough hook once during mixing. Turn off the mixer and let rest 10 minutes. Add 4 teaspoons kosher salt and mix in medium for another 5 minutes. The dough will be shiny, wet and elastic.

Coat a large bowl with 1 Tablespoon of the oil. Mist a silicone spatula with cooking spray and use it to scrape the dough into the bowl. Flip the dough with the spatula to oil all sides. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot for 4-5 hours. Make sure to use a really large bowl because the dough will rise, fall and rise again (insert your Jesus commentary here, it’s miracle dough!) during this step and needs room to expand.

When the dough is ready, generously mist a 13” x 18” (half sheet) rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray, then pour 1 tablespoon oil onto the middle of the baking sheet. Gently scrape the dough onto the center of the sheet and let rest, uncovered, for 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 500 degrees F with a rack in the lower position. If using Campari tomatoes, cut them into quarters; if using cherry tomatoes, cut them in half. If using canned whole tomatoes, chop into large chunks and drain thoroughly. Place the tomatoes in a large bowl and mash gently with a potato masher. Transfer to a fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl and set aside to drain until ready to use.

After the dough has rested, oil your hands, and, working from the center, gently push dough into an even layer to the edges and into the corners of the baking sheet; be careful not to press out all the air. It’s fine if the dough does not completely fill the pan, but it should come close.

Drizzle the tomatoes with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, then toss. Scatter over the dough, leaving a narrow border. Let rest for another 30 minutes. Scatter the cheese over the dough, then sprinkle with the oregano, pepper, fresh basil and kosher or flaky salt (if using). Bake until the surface of the pizza is golden brown and the bottom is crisped and well browned, 18-20 minutes. Slide the pizza from the pan onto a wire rack and cool for a few minutes before slicing.

To make 2 12” round pizzas instead of one big rectangle if that is your preferred geometry: Follow the recipe to make and rise the dough. When the dough is ready, generously mist two 12” round pizza pans with cooking spray, then pour 1 tablespoon oil onto the center of each pan. Scrape half the dough onto the center of each pan. Continue with the recipe, allowing the dough to rest for 20 minutes before pushing it to the edges of the pans and adding toppings. Bake one at a time, reducing the baking time to 12-15 minutes. 

Toppings

Because pour-in-the-pan pizza dough is extremely wet, it’s important to use toppings that are dry, or the pizza will get soggy on top. Don’t add too many toppings, the tomatoes and mozzarella, plus two more is about right. 

Scatter the ingredient(s) onto the tomato topped dough just before adding the cheese, although you might put pepperoni or sausage on top of the cheese. If you are adding high sodium toppings, you might skip the salt that’s sprinkled on before baking.

• Sliced pepperoni or salami
• Black or green olives, pitted, halved and dried off
• Roasted peppers, patted dry and cut into strips
• Marinated artichoke hearts, patted dry and cut into chunks
• Spinach, washed, dried and torn into chunks
• Sausage, browned and drained

This recipe is adapted from one found in Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street magazine. He also has a cookbook. He is a real genius and all his recipes are worth a look. The lovely and gracious Pete’s Mate loves to make pizza at home and this is the best we have found. She made a few slight tweaks because she improves everything she touches (except Pete, he’s hopeless).